Roosevelt Blog

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May 2024

One Seattle Plan Update – Comment Deadline Extended to Monday, May 20 The Mayor’s Draft One Seattle Plan was released in early March and it kicked off a series of seven citywide open houses, where neighbors and community were given the opportunity to learn more and provide feedback on the Draft Plan. We are nearing the end of this engagement period and have extended the deadline for public comment to 5:00 p.m. on Monday, May 20. You can provide feedback on our Engagement Hub or email us at OneSeattleCompPlan@seattle.gov. Virtual Open House Watch a recording of our virtual open house to learn more about specific aspects of the Draft Plan. This event was live streamed on May 2 to close out our series of engagement events that began two months ago.We appreciate all who have attended an in-person open house, hand wrote a comment, or sent us letters in the mail. Continue to send us feedback by emailing us or commenting directly on the Draft Plan via our Engagement Hub by 5:00 p.m. on Monday, May 20. JOIN the RNA: RNA | The Roosevelt Neighborhood Association – Celebrating Seattle’s Roosevelt Neighborhood

Special Report on One Seattle Plan

One Seattle Plan – Comprehensive Plan for Seattle Special report by the RNA  The ‘Comp plan’ is required by the State Growth Management Act to be passed by the end of 2024, and will guide the 20-year growth of our city.  There are various public open houses and the RNA is planning for an in-person meeting on Wed May 1st and a virtual meeting on Sat May 4th (more details to follow when these events are set) for those who want to learn about more details before the comment period ends on Monday May 20th.    ONE SEATTLE PLAN – COMPREHENSIVE PLAN  Draft One Seattle Plan: Seattle’s Comprehensive Plan is a roadmap for where and how our city will grow and invest in our communities over the next twenty years and beyond. To view the Draft Plan and provide comment, visit the online Engagement Hub. One Seattle Plan – OPCD | seattle.gov About This is a 20-year plan for growth​ and vision for the future of Seattle. It is required by Washington State Growth Management Act (GMA) to pass by the end of 2024. It will guide coordinated action by City departments. Seattle 2035 is our current comprehensive plan. The Comp Plan is updated about once every 10 years.  4 Key Themes Housing and Affordability: Expand housing opportunities across the city. Equity and Opportunity: Promote a more equitable Seattle as we grow. Community and Neighborhoods: Focus growth and investment in complete, walkable communities. Climate and Sustainability: Meet the challenges of climate change for a resilient future.  Project Documents: Project Documents – OPCD | seattle.gov Appendices:https://seattle.gov/documents/Departments/OPCD/SeattlePlan/OneSeattlePlanDEISAppendices.pdf  Engagement Hub The Engagement Hub is your opportunity to provide feedback directly onto the Draft Plan. You can comment as much as you’d like in the various sections of the Plan. The comment deadline is May 20, 5:00 p.m. Use this link to comment:  Public participation platform of Seattle OPCD You can submit comments by email at:  PCD_CompPlan_EIS@seattle.gov Goals The King County Growth Management Council requires that the City plan for at least 80,000 homes and 159,000 jobs.  OPCD thinks that the draft plan released will result in at least 100,000 homes. What about the current housing deficit?  “Seattle will need 112,000 total new homes over the next 20 years, including 44,000 for people making less than 30% of area median income, according to the projections.” Seattle Times Oct 2, 2023:  Thousands of new homes needed across King County | The Seattle Times Impacts to Seattle due to passage of State Bill HB 1110 https://www.seattle.gov/documents/departments/opcd/seattleplan/implementinghb1110.pdf New housing options across the city for Middle housing zoning. Allow a range of middle housing types on all residential lots, including at least six of a prescribed list of nine housing types: duplex, triplex, fourplex, fiveplex, sixplex, townhouses, stacked flats, courtyard apartments, and cottage housing. Allow at least 4 units on all residential lots. Allow at least 6 units on all residential lots if a) located within a quarter mile of a “major transit stop” or b) at least two are affordable units “Major transit stop” means:(a) A stop on a high capacity transportation system funded or expanded under the provisions of chapter 81.104 RCW; (b) Commuter rail stops; (c) Stops on rail or fixed guideway systems; or (d) Stops on bus rapid transit routes.  Additional Goals More apartments/mixed uses along frequent transit corridors. Tailored zoning in areas of high displacement risk. Affordable housing incentives. Corner stores.   Impacts to Roosevelt due to passage of State Bill HB 1110. The one and only “major transit stop” in Roosevelt is the Sound Transit Light Rail Station, and Neighborhood Residential zones within ¼ mile can have up to six units, depending on the property size. Roosevelt is to be called an Urban Center (currently called an Urban Village) going forward.   Growth Projections and Housing Needs April 23, 2021 City of Seattle | Analysis of Market Rate Housing Needs and Supply: https://www.seattle.gov/Documents/Departments/OPCD/OngoingInitiatives/HousingChoices/SeattleMarketRateHousingNeedsAndSupplyAnalysis2021.pdf Despite a historic surge in new construction, housing supply is not keeping pace with demand. The rate of new housing production in Seattle is higher than it has been in several decades. However, Seattle has been gaining jobs at an even faster pace. Between 2005 and 2019, Seattle would have needed to produce an additional 9,000 housing units to maintain its baseline ratio of jobs to housing units. This shortage of housing supply increases competition for each available unit, driving up rents and housing prices across the market.Seattle lacks sufficient capacity for “missing middle” ownership housing production. A recent preliminary study of urban growth capacity in Seattle found that only 12% of total capacity for housing development is in middle density zones, including residential small lot and lowrise zones, that are suitable for townhomes or multiplexes that have potential to provide a relatively lower cost entry point to family-sized ownership housing opportunities. This lack of sufficient capacity indicates Seattle will continue to see shortages of ownership housing opportunities in years to come if no actions are taken.In the rental market, there is a shortage of rental units affordable and available to lower income households.  Seattle has a surplus of over 9,000 rental units affordable at 80% of area median income (AMI) or below, compared to the total number of renter households with incomes at 80% of AMI or below.1 However, after accounting for higher income households residing in a portion of these units, there is an effective shortage of nearly 21,000 rental units that are both affordable and available to households at 80% of AMI or below. Such “down renting” or residing in lower cost units that would otherwise be affordable to lower income households, is a common outcome of housing supply constraints, particularly a lack of ownership housing opportunities. As a result, many lower income households must either rent more expensive housing or look outside of the city for housing they can afford.There are more than 34,000 low-wage workers commuting long distances to jobs in Seattle. Over 34,000 workers in jobs paying less than $40,000 per year commute more than 25 miles from their homes to jobs located in Seattle. This is an indicator of workforce housing needs that are not being met in Seattle. Presumably, many of these workers were not able to find adequate affordable housing closer to their workplace. At this wage level, a full-time worker could only afford a 0- bedroom apartment in one of the lowest cost areas of the city. And this latent demand for workforce housing will continue to grow. Employment forecasts anticipate about 35,000 net new jobs in lower- wage occupations in Seattle by 2030.  The Mayor’s plan versus the draft OPCD plan? Documents recently obtained by The Urbanist through a public records request show that the Seattle Office of Planning and Community Development (OPCD) had proposed a more ambitious option last fall before the department was overruled by the Mayor’s Office. Planners Proposed Bigger Upzones Before Harrell’s Team Intervened, Records Show – The UrbanistOriginal Version of Growth Plan for Seattle Called for Much More Density Than Proposal Released in March – PubliCola More Issues to ConsiderThe Urban Village (UV) Strategy:  The Seattle Planning Commission’s 2020 paper “Evolving Seattle’s Growth Strategy” noted that the current Urban Village strategy perpetuated inequities that have existed in Seattle land use patterns since the creation of the city. A focus on equality would allow more homes in all neighborhoods, whereas a focus on equity would allow more homes in areas where historic redlining prohibited people of color from living and neighborhoods that have seen little to no change in zoning since the implementation of the Urban Village strategy in 1994. Does the draft EIS address this and if so, how?Will adding 24 new Neighborhood Centers be enough? The 1994 Comp Plan had this same number and has not kept up with growth needs. Seattle studied dozens of sites for housing growth. These 24 got picked | The Seattle TimesMiddle Housing: The proposed Floor-Area-Ratio (FAR) of 0.9 may allow for 4 units though not for ‘middle housing’ intended for families needing two bedrooms or more.  A more practical FAR of 1.2 or 1.5 could generate many more options. Affordability: While new housing will cost more than existing housing, increasing the supply of new housing units is important to maintain some equilibrium so that demand does not further outpace supply and encourage unrestrained rental increases. Mandatory Housing Affordability:  How is the Mandatory Housing Affordability (MHA) program being factored into the number of proposed housing units, given that the Community Indicators Report (September 2020) released by the City’s Equitable Development Initiative identified a need for 68,000 “affordable” units at all income levels below 80 percent of Seattle’s area median income, as well as the latest numbers from the city on MHA showing that just 7 percent of all housing units created over the last year qualify as “affordable?”Homelessness:  King County’s Point in Time count showed an increase in unsheltered individuals in 2022 compared to 2020, from 11,751 to 13,368. How does this increase in unsheltered homelessness influence the amount and types of housing allowed as part of the Comprehensive Plan? Walkable Neighborhoods: Walkable cities can benefit the environment, the economy, and your health. All of Seattle can become a 15 minute walkable city, by increasing the number of new Urban Neighborhoods, encouraging small neighborhood stores, and increasing pedestrian and bike safety.See how walkable your community is:  Close – Travel Time Map (beta)Op-Ed: Growth Plan Fails to Put Enough Housing for Workers in Seattle – The Urbanist Op-Ed written by owner of Cloud Coffee Maple Leaf neighborhood: Trees: What methodology is being used to ensure that the tree canopy across the city is preserved or increased while also taking into account reductions in the buildable area on individual lots that may be necessary to achieve this goal?  Policy Priorities — Complete Communities Coalition. Allow midrise housing (4-8 stories) and mixed uses in all residential areas within walking distance of frequent transit;Allow middle housing like triplexes, fourplexes, sixplexes, townhouses, and stacked flats throughout all residential areas;Create significant floor area, height, and density bonuses for affordable and social housing development.   Seattle Alternative 6 Comment Helper for draft EIS. Use this link for help drafting comments: https://alternative6.org  Local Opinion writings: The Comprehensive Plan Must Do More – Seattle Transit BlogOp-Ed: Six Ways to Improve Seattle’s Comprehensive Plan – The UrbanistThe One Seattle Comprehensive Plan Is Here – The Stranger

January 2024

The RNA wishes all a Healthy, Happy, Meaningful 2024! We will continue to be engaged in a number of Neighborhood efforts and City sponsored programs, and always looking for new members and board involvement to help further all of these projects. eNews January 2024: SDOT 11th Ave NE & 12th Ave NE Paving & Safety project The SDOT team has begun the process of selecting a contractor and expects to have them on board early this year, and expect construction to begin as soon as early this year and continue into 2025. SDOT wants to know if you have any needs during construction such as business loading and deliveries, ADA-accessibility, and special events that may be impacted by construction. Take our pre-construction survey to let us know. What to expect during construction Typical weekday working hours from 7 AM – 5 PM. Overnight work may be required, and we will provide advance notice to affected neighbors. Temporary disruptions to on-street parking and sidewalks. Detours for people walking, biking, and rolling will be provided. Noise, dust, and vibrations during work hours. For more info: seattle.gov/transportation/11th12thPaving Email SDOT: 11th12thPaving@seattle.gov Business Support The RNA has been reaching out to Business and Property owners to understand what issues and problems are important to support our local commercial activity. We are initiating an effort to create a business-to-business communication network. We will be hosting an in-person meeting in March for business and property owners. If you have a business in the Roosevelt neighborhood, please get in touch with us to learn more. rna@rooseveltseattle.org Weedin Place The RNA has been engaging SDOT regarding improvements to activate this place to be more inviting. While there is a long-range plan for this space, there is not the budget to complete that plan, so the RNA is exploring smaller steps and ideas to upgrade this potential community space. With Zania (Mediterranean cuisine) moving into the adjacent building, there will be a more around. Tell is your ideas and/or get involved in this project. One Seattle Comprehensive Plan The City has delayed (and delayed) publishing the Draft-EIS for the Comp Plan. The deadline for the City to complete the Final-EIS is Dec. 31, 2024, so this delay may reduce the amount of time for public review and comment. While we do not know when this will be made public, the RNA will host an educational meeting so that people can learn more about current zoning, and the process currently underway.  Sound Transit TOD  There are two small properties owned by Sound Transit (ST), one on the SE corner of 12th Ave NE and NE 67th St., and the other south of NE 66th St, directly west of the south station entrance. ST will be working with the RNA on what future uses and community principles that are appropriate for both of these sites, starting in 2024. The RNA will be reaching out to keep the community informed and hope that you will take part in future workshops to help guide this project. New Development and Commercial activity 6615 Roosevelt Way NE (former Bank of America building).While there is an application to demolish this structure, the RNA has been actively working with the City and Fire Department to accelerated this process as the building is a magnet for graffiti, and other activity. 917 NE 63RD ST. Land Use Application to allow an 8-story, 131-unit apartment building with retail. Parking for 39 vehicles proposed. Existing buildings to be demolished. Early Design Guidance conducted under 3039992-EG.917 NE 63RD ST – Seattle in Progress 6206-6202 Roosevelt Way NE. EDG – New multi-family building with approximately 150 housing units and 1 level of underground parking. Demolition of both existing buildings on site.  6300 9th Ave NE  – Completed. 7-story, 140-unit apartment building. Parking for 90 vehicles. The RNA is looking to expand our Board, and welcome anyone who has interest in community projects.Please contact rna@rooseveltseattle.org to learn more.